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Appreciating De’Aaron Fox’s passing ability

We may have seen one of the best passes of his career Monday.
By | 46 Comments | Mar 1, 2022

Credit: Sergio Estrada-USA TODAY Sports

De’Aaron Fox completed his second game in a row with 10 assists Monday night in the win over the Oklahoma City Thunder. Over his last four games, he is averaging 27 points and 8 assists. He had only notched 10 assists one other time this season, way back on Oct. 27. Last season, he had 11 games with 10 or more assists. The season before that, he had 10 or more assists in 9 games, and 9 games the season before that. And the season before that, 17 games!

So, this is nothing new for Fox, but the assist numbers are somewhat new for Fox this season.

Here are his assist averages over his five seasons in the NBA, starting with his rookie season: 4.4, 7.3, 6.8, 7.2 and 5.3 assists this season. Clearly, the slow start to the season hampered his numbers in general, but since Feb. 8, we have started to see the Fox we have been accustomed to. In those 8 games, he is averaging 6 assists. His recent distribution of the ball over the last four games, however, is a reminder that Fox is a good passer and that often gets overlooked by his speed and ability to break opponents down off the dribble (as well as his poor free throw and three-point percentages, and often questionable defense). While he isn’t always the most consistent with it, he still is very talented in the assist category and coming off averaging 7.2 assists last season.

And he may have completed one of the best passes of his career on Monday.

Let’s take a closer look.

When he gets down into the paint with that momentum and three guys on him, he might have not even been able to see Donte DiVincenzo. The fact that he gets the ball around the help defender and it almost curves around a fourth defender to find the hands of DiVincenzo is pretty incredible. This most likely is a play they have practiced, but even if that is the case, he makes it happen through four defenders and that is extremely impressive.

Following the win, Alvin Gentry commented on Fox’s passing and the spacing in the game.

“I thought we did a good job playing with the spacing that we had out on the floor. I thought Foxy did a really good job of creating shots for other people. They were doubling Domas [Domantas Sabonis] every time he touched the ball and so we had to have cutters and we had to have guys that stayed out and spread the floor and spaced the floor, and I thought we did a good job with that after initially struggling with it a little bit. I just thought overall, we played with good pace and then we did a good job of passing up a good shot and creating a great shot.”

Cutters:

Spacing:

Pick and Roll:

The way the offense has opened up some since Sabonis arrived certainly is playing a part.

Fox had this to say after the game: “I’ve been able to get guys involved, been able to put the ball in the basket – definitely think I need to be doing it a little bit better efficiently, especially tonight with free throws. That’s probably the one thing I was really frustrated on, but other than that, obviously we’re still getting used to playing with each other, but as long as the ball is moving, the ball is popping, guys are cutting and we’re making our open shots, I think I’ve done a pretty good job at that,” Fox said. “Playing this position, it’s continuing to have that balance of scoring and distributing the ball, and just trying to finish out these last 20 games, shoot the ball better, obviously I don’t think I’ve had the best season as far as that.”

He was a dismal 8-14 from the line against the Thunder, so yeah that still needs to be better. He shot 50% from the field, but only 1-5 from three for the second game in a row. The three-point shot has never been Fox’s go-to, but if he can play off Sabonis, the spacing is there and there are cutters, then there is more than enough to his game to compensate, including his midrange shot, for the three not falling. Of course, if he was able to get his three-point shooting and free throw averages up then it would unlock a whole other level for him.

Anyhow, let’s take a look at some more dishes from recent games.

A look-away, patience and open layup:

Hesitation and then a crisp, quick dime for the open three:

More Pick and Roll:

 

 

Anticipation:

Fox also has a really good feel for guys cutting off the initial push up the floor on a new possession:

 

The fifth-year player has put a lot of people’s minds at ease in recent weeks as he has moved past his early season slump and has proven that it was just that – a slump. These smooth passes are an example of that. That being said, the Kings still need to learn how to actually start winning games and add the right fit of players around Fox and Sabonis who can help accomplish this.

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AnybodyButBagley
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March 1, 2022 9:34 pm

So a max deal point guard will get 10 assists a game about ten times.

What about defense and winning games?

Greg
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March 2, 2022 6:29 am

Feels like the Lakers are making a pretty strong case that having a max contract player (or multiple) doesn’t mean you win games. Roster construction matters.

Last edited 2 years ago by Greg Wissinger
AnybodyButBagley
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March 2, 2022 12:12 pm
Reply to  Greg

Just want to see this team focus on wins instead of basic point guard skills.

Dub_TC
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March 2, 2022 6:47 am

found Bruski’s burner account!

Jack
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March 2, 2022 11:02 am

Right now Fox is playing some of his best defense.

AnybodyButBagley
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March 2, 2022 12:08 pm
Reply to  Jack

Which is still not much.

eddie41
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March 1, 2022 9:41 pm

nice dimes.

RobHessing
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March 1, 2022 9:45 pm

10 dimes will get you a dollar!

RikSmits
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March 1, 2022 10:18 pm
Reply to  RobHessing

Are you saying that dime was not a dozen?

eddie41
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March 1, 2022 10:38 pm
Reply to  RikSmits

We feel that the problem isn’t with Peter. It’s that you haven’t challenged him enough to get him really motivated.

BeTheBall
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March 2, 2022 10:56 am
Reply to  RobHessing

I read that in Mark Jones’ voice.

Want2win
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March 3, 2022 3:09 pm
Reply to  RobHessing

You forgot to adjust for the recent “transitory” inflation.. so his 10 dimes really only get you about .$.89

Bluejohn
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March 1, 2022 10:41 pm

The first 2 examples (I think) were very cool. They showed Fox passing inside out which we don’t see very often. When Fox was on the hardwood with either Hali or Davion bringing the ball up his passing and resulting dimes fell off fairly significantly. He’s not a good enough shooter to play the 2 and off the ball.

I’m hoping that somewhere around the trade deadline someone on the coaching staff or someone he trusts sat him down and told him what the expectations for a max player/face of the franchise is expected to do and that anything less than that is not acceptable.
If you can’t raise your game we are going to trade your ass because the way you’ve been playing so far this season is far below what we need from you.

AnybodyButBagley
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March 1, 2022 10:45 pm
Reply to  Bluejohn

A threatened trade off of this team is not a threat for Fox. He has a max deal. No other team in the NBA would ever give him that contract. He has what he wants for the rest of his career. Be even better if he was traded.

Jack
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March 2, 2022 11:06 am

Out of respect I disagree.

WizsSox
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March 1, 2022 11:59 pm
Reply to  Bluejohn

If you can’t raise your game we are going to trade your asscomment image

Last edited 2 years ago by WizsSox
Jack
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March 2, 2022 11:05 am
Reply to  Bluejohn

Since the trade deadline Fox is not only playing great but is enjoying it more, therefore I am enjoying watching him more.

TaintedMeat
March 2, 2022 7:39 am

I think Fox eeks out an all star nod next year. he’ll average somewhere in the 28 points per game with 7 ish assists, it’ll be hard to ignore. We’ll still miss the playoffs but i bet he gets there…

RobHessing
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March 2, 2022 8:11 am
Reply to  TaintedMeat

He’ll have a helluva hill to climb and will need some injury luck (both him staying healthy and others getting hurt). He is easily behind Morant, Curry, Lillard, and CP3 right now, and behind both Dejounte and Jamal Murray, Mike Conley and Gilgeous-Alexander as well. That places him somewhere between 5th and 9th among Western Conference point guards, and that’s not including D’Angelo Russell (or that Luka Doncic guy).

It’s possible, but it will take that exponential leap that we have been waiting on for the past few years.

Kings-Rebuild
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March 2, 2022 9:21 am
Reply to  RobHessing

I think Sabonis and another shooter will help his game but I agree it will take a monumental leap in his game that doesn’t seem apparent for him to become an all star.

Jack
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March 2, 2022 11:18 am
Reply to  Kings-Rebuild

Fox doesn’t need to be your star. All he has to do is average 26 to 28 points a night with 4 or 5 rebounds and 6 to 7 assists which he already does. On defense I have seen an improvement or you guys haven’t watched the last games since the trade deadline. See he doesn’t need to be an allstar it really doesn’t show up in the stats for Fox. I have coached some really good players who were never highlighted with trophies.

Kingsguru21
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March 2, 2022 11:21 am
Reply to  Jack

All he has to do is average 26 to 28 points a night with 4 or 5 rebounds and 6 to 7 assists which he already does.

He’s never done this over a full season, although he did come close a year ago. He was a bit short in the points and rebounds area.

He’s capable of it, and if he does it every night he will get lots of All Star mention if the Kings win more games. Guaranteed.

But Rob’s point that he has a high hurdle to clear is also true, and that shouldn’t be overlooked.

Jack
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March 2, 2022 12:58 pm
Reply to  Kingsguru21

Just wait.

SneakerKing
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March 2, 2022 9:30 am
Reply to  RobHessing

It would take some injuries and/or one of those out of nowhere leaps by the team (think this year’s Cavs) for Fox to sniff the All Star game.

andy_sims
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March 2, 2022 11:05 am
Reply to  RobHessing

That confuses me. What would an exponential leap look like?

Fox is a really good player, and there just aren’t that many facets of the game where some kind of massive improvement are even possible.

Fox has taken 1,084 3PA in his career, and converted 343 of them, 31.5%. He’s played 314 games since being drafted. If he had made fifty more of those shots, one single, additional make every six games, he’s at 36.1%. With everything else that Fox brings, I doubt that most people would take issue with that. Below league-average, sure, but it would force defenses to play him tighter on the perimeter, and if you try to snuggle up to Fox, he’s a ghost, and you just gave up a bucket.

A more consistent defensive effort would be welcome, and Fox has shown that when he bears down, he is an absolute pest. He’s got all of the tools to be a great defender, it’s a matter of doing the work. Doing so would make him a better player, but would it really be something where we’d think, he’s gone from also-ran to all-NBA?

The free throws are irritating as hell, but the fact is, he’s at 74.8% for the season, which isn’t actually a problem. That percentage should be his floor, but if he can consistently be close to 80%, is that an exponential leap? Had he made only twenty more free throws this season, he’s at 81.5%. This is certainly conceivable.

The discussions that surround Fox frame him as a rather average NBA guard, who ought to be a lot better. The reality is that Fox is pretty damned good, and he’s much closer to becoming great than he is to mediocrity.

This isn’t addressed to you, Rob, but there is a good deal of “familiarity breeds contempt” when it comes to Kings players discussed in many threads. The discount that gets applied to what Fox does doesn’t really hold up under scrutiny.

“He’s a max player! He needs to be a leader!” That’s not how it works. A healthy percentage of commenters like the idea of trading Fox for Ben Simmons, which is a thing that bears consideration, to be sure. Simmons is a max player. Simmons is about as far from being a leader as you can get. He’d improve the defense, but you’d have no go-to guy to get you a bucket when you absolutely need one.

This isn’t a simple matter of focusing on the things that Fox doesn’t do. It’s a substantial undervaluing of the things that he does do, and how incredibly close he already is to being a top-25 player. Will he get there? I don’t know, I truly don’t.

But it won’t be a gigantic leap if he does.

Kingsguru21
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March 2, 2022 11:09 am
Reply to  andy_sims

Well put Sims. Put me squarely in this camp as well.

Jack
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March 2, 2022 11:10 am
Reply to  Kingsguru21

I agree Sims.

RobHessing
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March 2, 2022 11:27 am
Reply to  andy_sims

Pictured below: Exponential leap –
comment image

Last edited 2 years ago by RobHessing
andy_sims
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March 2, 2022 11:57 am
Reply to  RobHessing

I’m howling about how similar their numbers are since Morant came into the league:

Screenshot 2022-03-02 115719.jpg
RobHessing
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March 2, 2022 12:04 pm
Reply to  andy_sims

I’m howling if anyone thinks that Morant and Fox are comparable players right now.

But if raw stats are your thing, the season-by-season breakdown fortifies the position that Morant has blown by Fox over the past couple of years. That Morant has seen an exponential leap in his game from this year. And that Morant is an all-star, while Fox is a wannabe in dire need of another progression in his game to even crack the top ten among NBA point guards.

Fox is a good NBA player. He is not going to be an all-star unless he takes his game to another level.

Jack
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March 2, 2022 1:04 pm
Reply to  RobHessing

He doesn’t have to an all-star. Fox is who he is and a very good player and point guard. What does comparing him with Morant give Fox a complex. I doubt it. I’m glad he is a Sacramento King.

RobHessing
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March 2, 2022 1:16 pm
Reply to  Jack

The sub-thread began with the notion that Fox could become an all-star. He certainly can, but it will take a leap forward in his game.

He is probably a 12-15 point guard in the league right now, which makes him one of the top 12-15 point guards in the world. That is rare air. To become an all star you would likely need to be one of the top 6-8 point guards in the world. That is even rarer air.

He is probably the 2nd best player on the Kings when you factor in his standing at his position – I think that Sabonis rates much higher as a big than Fox does as a PG (I have Sabonis as #4 in the West and 7-8 overall among the bigs). The divide widens between Sabonis and Fox when you factor in the contracts, which are of critical concern when it comes to the Kings’ ability to construct their roster. In that regard, Fox needs to climb that pg ladder in order to justify the investment in him.

Last edited 2 years ago by RobHessing
TaintedMeat
March 3, 2022 7:53 am
Reply to  RobHessing

Fox has exploded back to his old self at least statistically since Hali left. A guy in top 10 in scoring is going to make the all star team, assuming he can sustain that I just can’t see how a guy whose top 10 in scoring doesn’t end up there…

andy_sims
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March 3, 2022 9:34 am
Reply to  RobHessing

I didn’t actually say they were comparable. Morant is doing great things in Memphis, and is fortunate to have so much talent around him. The numbers are strikingly similar, so the question is, why are those stats so effective in Memphis, and not in Sacramento?

Unless the answer revolves around some personal failing of Fox’s, my conclusion is that given better players, Fox leads the Kings to more wins. And it still won’t require some supposed leap when that happens.

Want2win
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March 3, 2022 3:13 pm
Reply to  andy_sims

I rarely agree with you but think you nailed this one

Kingsguru21
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March 2, 2022 7:52 am

Enjoyed the article Blake. Thanks.

Kings-Rebuild
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March 2, 2022 9:18 am

That’s all great but are we getting the value we hoped for out of that contract. At the moment that’s a clear no. Also, he may not be moveable with that contract which is probably why we moved Haliburton instead of Fox. All that said, his career is at the crossroads right now and without a consistent uptick in his game, we could be heading into an albatross contract.

WhiteChocolate
March 2, 2022 9:46 am

I think the talent has always been there. But for a number of reasons the motivation hasn’t this year. Nice to see some of that coming back. Not to get side tracked, but I think the BIG deal is having someone on the floor that commands double teams. That is so huge for us. Fox and the Ox, Let’s go!

RikSmits
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March 2, 2022 9:47 am

Partly OT, but what are the criteria for an assist? Isn’t it finding a free player for an open or easy shot, or freeing a player up for such a shot?

Because I see plenty of plays all over the NBA where a simple pass is followed by a few dribbles into traffic and a tough shot over one or two defenders and it’s chalked up as an assist.

The next to last video is an example of such an “assist”, with Lamb dribbling around a guy and throwing it up over a second defender. And there’s also one of Sabonis dribbling into two guys and taking a tough shot off the glass.

Last edited 2 years ago by RikSmits
Kingsguru21
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March 2, 2022 10:00 am
Reply to  RikSmits

Partly OT, but what is the criteria for an assist? Isn’t it finding a free player for an open or easy shot, or freeing a player up for such a shot?

This used to be a pet peeve of mine but now I just gave up on it. It’s a lost cause. There’s no desire to narrowly define what is an assist because top assist guys often benefit from these types of calls going their way.

Some scorekeepers are more loose with their giving of assists than others is all I know. And I just leave it at that because, like I say, I’ve given up on wondering what a quality assist is vs what isn’t. How many times Dutchman have we seen a pass that was absolutely spectacular but lead to FT’s? Or a blown layup by the recipient of the pass?

But the floor game showed by De’Aaron at times against OKC was a good thing to see if nothing else. Now it just needs to happen more often against everybody else.

Last edited 2 years ago by Kingsguru21
RikSmits
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March 2, 2022 10:07 am
Reply to  Kingsguru21

Yeah, a bit annoying.

And there should be a stat for a pass leading to FT’s!

andy_sims
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March 2, 2022 11:12 am
Reply to  RikSmits

I absolutely agree with this. A player makes a pass, a teammate scores points. Sounds like an assist.

“What if the shooter only makes one of two?”

I’m going to say that I hate this question, because I’ve been unable to come up with an equitable solution. This press conference is over!

doog
March 2, 2022 12:10 pm
Reply to  andy_sims

I know it’s hosted on The Site Which Shall Not Be Named, but I penned an open letter to David Stern lo these 12 years ago on this very topic. I still think I’ve got this thing nailed.

andy_sims
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March 2, 2022 11:10 am
Reply to  RikSmits

It really is highly subjective, and 95% of the time, it shouldn’t be. The person at the scoring table has always been too generous in determining whether or not a home player has assisted on a bucket. I’d imagine that it probably balances out over the course of a season, but the criteria, I thought, was pretty clear, and I don’t think anyone actually polices it.

andy_sims
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March 2, 2022 10:27 am

One might get the impression from reading this that Fox isn’t terrible. Please take the article down as soon as possible.

Jman1949
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March 2, 2022 11:06 am
Reply to  andy_sims

So many recent articles about a guy who has never learned how to play the NBA game!

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